Chana Dal is an easy Indian recipe prepared with chana dal lentils (also known as split chickpeas or bengal gram), assorted spices cooked in an Instant pot pressure cooker, or a traditional Indian pressure cooker for under 30 minutes. It's Vegan, Gluten-free.
What is Dal?
Dal also called Daal, Dhal, or Dahl basically are dried pulses that can be whole or split.
Chana dal (also known as split chickpeas or Bengal gram) is a very popular and healthy legume that is frequently cooked in almost each and every Indian household. Chana dal has a great source of plant protein, iron, folate, fiber, is gluten-free, and diabetic-friendly since it has a low glycemic index of around 8.
Try my other Chana dal recipes like lauki chana dal and chana dal payasam from my blog.
Today, we are making an easy North Indian Style Chana Dal with an extra ghee tadka which adds all the magic and gets ready under 30 minutes and perfect for weekday meals.
You can follow the same chana dal fry recipe with Red lentils (also known as Masoor Dal) as well. I have shared both Instant Pot Pressure Cooker and Traditional Stovetop recipe below.
How to Make Chana Dal in Instant Pot
Soak the chana dal in hot water for 15-20 minutes.
Press SAUTE on Instant Pot. Add oil and once it’s hot add cumin seeds. Let them crackle
Add minced ginger-garlic, green chili, and onions. Saute till onions turn light brown in color.
Next add tomatoes, dry spices like turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, salt, and cook till tomatoes turn soft, which takes 2-3 minutes.
Then add soaked lentils, water and give a stir. Adjust spices at this stage. Also, deglaze the pot i.e., make sure there is no food particle sticking to the pot to avoid burn alerts.
Close the lid on the pot, and turn the pressure valve to SEALING position. Set the pot to MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK (High Pressure) and increase the timer to 12 minutes.
Once the pot beeps, let it release the pressure naturally(NPR) for 10 minutes.
Lastly, squeeze some lime juice and garnish with coriander leaves (cilantro). Mix well. Add ½ cup of water to adjust the dal consistency if required.
Instant Pot Chana Dal curry also known as Bengal gram dal or split chickpeas lentils is ready, you can also add extra tempering (tadka) and serve hot with steamed rice, quinoa, or roti.
Note on the consistency:
If one wants really soft mashed dal, 14-15 minutes manual/pressure cook (High Pressure) is probably the ideal setting in manual mode.
But I like lentils to be a little firm so I usually cook for 12 minutes Manual/Pressure Cook (High Pressure).
Stovetop Pressure Cooker Method
Follow the same steps from the instant pot instructions. Give 3-4 whistles on medium flame and let the pressure release naturally. All the other steps remain the same.
Stovetop Pot Method
Just soak the chana dal for 3-4 hours and then boil it in a pot for 25-30 minutes or until soft. After the lentils are cooked, follow the step-by-step process to prepare the tempering and saute onion-tomato-ginger-garlic paste and then assemble the dal.
FAQs
Chana Dal Fry can be served with roti, chapati, jeera rice, or steamed rice. I personally like eating it with steamed rice or just served it as a Split Chickpeas Soup.
How to store cooked chana dal?
Chana dal tadka is great for meal planning, can be refrigerated for 3-4 days, and freezes well up to a month when stored in freezer-safe bags.
Tips & Variations
- Don’t skip out on soaking the chana dal for at least 15-20 minutes – Chana dal takes a longer time to cook. Soaking softens the lentils and cooks faster.
- If dal has more liquid, then you can boil it for few minutes and vaporize the water.
- You can also add bottle gourd, zucchini, or pumpkin to this dal.
- For a variation, you can also make this dal by skipping onion, ginger, and tomatoes.
- Vegan Variation: Skip ghee and use the oil of your choice.
More Lentils/Bean Recipes
- Dal Tadka - Dal cooked with toor dal (yellow lentils).
- Green Lentil Soup – lentil soup made with green lentils, carrots, celery, red bell pepper, and Indian spices.
- Spinach Dal / Palak Dal – Dhal cooked with spinach leaves.
- Whole green moong dal– Dal cooked with whole mung beans.
- Panchmel dal – dal prepared with five varieties of lentils.
- Spinach Dal / Palak Dal – Dhal cooked with spinach leaves.
- Raw Mango Dal – Dal cooked with Raw Mango.
Instant Pot Chana dal Recipe (Split Chickpeas Soup)
Ingredients
Measuring cup used 1 cup = 250 ml
- 1 cup chana dal (bengal gram) soaked for 15-20 minutes
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- 1 large tomato finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic minced
- 1 green chilli slit lengthwise
- 2 cups water for cooking
- 2 tablespoon oil or ghee
- 2 tablespoon coriander leaves
- juice of half lime
- salt to taste
Spices:
- 1 teaspoon cumin (jeera) seeds
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
Extra Tempering (Optional)
- 1 teaspoon ghee
- ½ teaspoon cumin (jeera) seeds
- ¼ teaspoon red chilli powder
- a pinch asafetida (hing)
Instructions
Instant Pot Method:
- Soak the chana dal for 15-20 minutes in hot water
- Press Saute mode on Instant Pot. Add oil and once it’s hot add cumin seeds. Let them crackle.
- Add minced ginger garlic ,green chili and onions. Saute till onions turn light brown in color.
- Add tomatoes ,dry spices like turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, salt and cook till tomatoes turn soft, takes 2-3 minutes.
- Next add soaked lentils or dal, water and give a stir.Adjust spices at this stage.
- Close the lid on the pot, and turn pressure valve to SEALING position.Set the pot to MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK (High Pressure) and increase timer to 12 minutes.
- Once the pot beeps, let it release the pressure naturally (NPR) for 10 minutes.
- Squeeze some lime juice, add garam masala and garnish with coriander leaves (cilantro). Mix well.
- Instant Pot Chana Dal is ready, you can also add extra tempering (tadka) and serve hot with boiled rice, quinoa or roti.
Stovetop Pressure Cooker Method:
- Follow the steps from the instant pot instructions. Give 3-4 whistles on medium flame and let the pressure release naturally. All the other steps remain the same.
Notes
Tips & Variations:
- Don’t skip out on soaking the chana dal for at-least 15-20 minutes – Chana dal takes a longer time to cook. Soaking soften the lentils and cooks faster.
- If dal has more liquid, then you can boil it for few minutes and vaporize the water.
- You can also add bottle gourd ,zucchini or pumpkin to this dal.
- For a variation ,you can also make this dal by skipping onion, ginger and tomatoes.
- Vegan Variation: Skip ghee and use oil of your choice.
Nutrition
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